For our Artist Member spotlight this month, we introduce you to Solana Adedokun! Solana is a Nigerian-American filmmaker, animator, artist, and writer currently based in Chicago. She describes her unique voice as a mix of jollof rice, a voracious love of animation, and showtunes, even though she’s not sure those things can actually be mixed. Originally from North Texas, Solana uses both her artistic and journalistic eye to explore the opposing forces in the spaces where she has lived, studied, and worked.

Solana is interested in working in the entertainment industry as a storyboard artist or writer with the eventual goal of directing and showrunning her own animated project. Her work often incorporates stop-motion animation techniques, infusing her own experiences into the stories she tells. Her most recent film, Yarnadernis, tells the intergenerational story of a grandmother and granddaughter made of yarn.

In addition to her passion for art and animation, Solana also serves as the Editor-in-Chief for the The Chicago Maroon, the school newspaper for the University of Chicago; she is only the second Black student to hold this prestigious position and the first African. Her work as a journalist often explores issues of race and public interest. Solana is also interested in the how public policy impacts the arts in both the United States and globally. She rounds out her eclectic set of interests and influences with her love of opera.

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For more about Solana and her work, visit her Artist Member page on HV.